“I fight Veer to win the princess!” – Roy Bronsgeest

This Friday, the Salman Khan epic Veer, directed by Anil Sharma, will release worldwide. The film, which Salman wrote, has been a dream project for the actor for about 20 years. The trailers certainly show how huge the film has turned out to be and looks fantastic! In the trailer, you see a glimpse of a big fight that takes place in a huge arena. In the battle, Salman is fighting an Englishman named Rhino. Who portrays Rhino you may ask? None other than the Dutch Bodybuilder Roy Bronsgeest.

31-year-old construction worker Roy Bronsgeest lives a quiet life with his wife and son in the Netherlands. Bodybuilding plays a large part in his life and that’s why he trains about four days a week to keep his body in shape. He has also participated in competitions and won many. He was seen in a music video of DJ Fedde Le Grand and performed with a famous Dutch singer on stage, but he he has never been in a movie.

That changed when Roy was approached by the bodybuilding association of the Netherlands. The association had been approached by chairman Amit Swami of the Indian bodybuilding Association looking for an actor to fit the part of Rhino. “They were looking for this tall, muscular guy with European looks. They had a very clear image of the character Rhino and they saw that in me,” says Roy.

“He is the unbeatable gladiator from Great Britain. Eventually I will have to fight Veer to win the princess. The winner gets to marry her. The English delegation is positive that Veer is no competition for Rhino.” Roy was quite excited about the role he was offered. “I am this really quiet guy so it was a lot of fun and interesting to play the part of a gladiator who is bursting with anger. I think a lot of relatives and friends will be very surprised to see me like that.” He adds that playing a gladiator was also like a boy’s dream come true. “As a kid, I used to play knights with friends and we would fight each other. And then suddenly, 25 years later, you are standing in India, in this huge arena, actually playing a gladiator.”

“I loved the hospitality”

Roy stayed in India for three weeks. He had absolutely no idea what was waiting for him. “When I arrived in India I was surprised by the hospitality of all the people.” The first few days were spent in Mumbai where he learned horseback riding from Tinnu Verma and his son. The training ended in four days and Roy flew to Jaipur. “All my scenes have been shot at the Amber Fort in Jaipur. The fort was very beautiful. It breathes history. Action director Tinnu Verma and his son have always stood by me in all the sequences.”

Who is Salman Khan?

The gladiator had never watched an Indian film or heard of Salman Khan before he began shooting for Veer. “During the shooting I realized how big of a star he is and I was really honoured to not only participate in such a beautiful film, but to top that, act opposite Salman Khan.” He goes on to add, “Salman works very hard and he knows exactly what he wants. He has dreamt of this project for so long and his vision is very clear. In between scenes he would give me valuable tips on acting and helped me if necessary.” What really impressed me was that besides being a great actor, Salman also does a lot of charity. He told me about his project and he is very committed to that as well. I never expected that the first time I met this tough guy.”

Tips on bodybuilding

Both men have an extremely good physique that you would wonder if Salman gave him tips on acting, did Roy give Salman any tips on bodybuilding? “Well, not really any tips or suggestions, but we in fact did discuss bodybuilding. Salman is currently writing a book on bodybuilding. His physical appearance is very important to him and you can see he works out regularly. We talked about food and how I prepare for competitions. He told me that he was very happy with his body the way it is right now and he cannot become a bodybuilder, as it doesn’t suit his character. I didn’t gave him any tips, but had a great time discussing our work-out routine.”

The first Bollywood movie Roy watched was actually Wanted starring Salman. “I have just seen half an hour of the movie. I was really impressed and I am planning on seeing more in the future.”

Anil Sharma’s passion is contagious

It was not only Salman Khan that impressed Roy. He also says that director Anil Sharma is someone who puts all his heart and soul in the film. “It was a very special experience. I didn’t have that much acting experience, so he gave me a crash course in acting. His passion was perceptible and contagious and made everyone give their 100%. I also got to meet Jackie Shroff and he is a true gentlemen and very easy going.”

Fantastic experience

Roy enjoyed this whole experience very much and will never forget it. “It feels really special to be a part of this historical movie. It is a huge project with huge sets. And everybody has given the movie all their soul and love. Everybody got along really well on and off the set. I feel really honoured to be a part of Veer.”

At this point, Roy hasn’t gotten any more offers from Bollywood, but he would be very honoured if he could return to India one day and play another part in a Bollywood film. Make sure and catch Roy battling Salman when Veer opens Friday!